Mathieu Amalric

“I directed three films and each time [I act] I hope it’s the last time so I have time to do my film [directing].” - Mathieu Amalric, on acting versus directing.

In the years since his mid-‘80s professional debut, Mathieu Amalric has amassed an impressive resume consisting of over 50 television shows and movies. Although he's best known for his stellar work in 2007’s The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, Mathieu Amalric’s turn as the villain in the James Bond adventure Quantam of Solace will surely transform him into a household name.

MAGNETISM

On the surface, Mathieu Amalric possesses the sort of offbeat looks that might hinder most guys' efforts to meet women. However, there’s little doubt that the confidence with which Mathieu Amalric carries himself, coupled with his undeniable talent in front of the camera, has endeared him to members of the fairer sex, and he’s reached a point where he’s considered something of a heartthrob in his native land of France. Little is known of Mathieu Amalric’s personal life, however, aside from the fact that he was once married to fellow performer Jeanne Balibar (with whom he has two children). The couple, who also worked together on five separate projects, split a few years ago. It seems likely that, thanks to his newfound international fame, Mathieu Amalric is now finding it a whole lot easier to cozy up to potential partners.

SUCCESS

Mathieu Amalric has established himself as one of France’s most versatile performers, and while the actor has remained largely unknown outside of his home country, there’s little doubt that he’s now joined the ranks of Europe’s most bankable leading men. His star-making turn as tragic figure Jean-Dominique Bauby in The Diving Bell and the Butterfly has surely upped his Q-rating among North Americans, and it does seem as though he’s riding the wave of that success with appearances in a raft of highly anticipated upcoming movies. In addition to his stint opposite Daniel Craig in Quantum of Solace, Mathieu Amalric is currently awaiting the release of several French-language efforts including L'ennemi public n° 1, which follows the career trajectory of the most notorious criminal of 1970s France. Mathieu Amalric is also itching to step behind the camera in the near future, as he’s been plotting a film revolving around the French Burlesque for several years now.

Mathieu Amalric Biography

Mathieu Amalric was born on October 25, 1965, in Neuilly-sur-Seine, Hauts-de-Seine, France. The son of a literary critic and a newspaper writer, Mathieu Amalric’s upper-class upbringing afforded him the opportunity to seek out projects and jobs that he felt genuinely passionate about. After trying his hand at a number of pursuits, he ultimately came to the realization that his calling lay within the world of cinema.

Mathieu Amalric was still in his teens when he decided to take the plunge by looking for work in the arts, and it wasn’t long before the aspiring auteur was toiling side-by-side with some of his heroes. “I started in movies when I was 17 as a trainee [assistant director] and an assistant editor,” he says. “I did all of the jobs and I directed my short films.” Though he took on a small role in the 1984 French drama Favourites of the Moon, Mathieu Amalric spent much of his early days working behind the scenes of various local productions and his own short films.

mathieu amalric stars in diary of a seducer

Mathieu Amalric spent much of the early ‘90s appearing in bit parts in obscure French movies, and it wasn’t until 1996 that the up-and-coming actor finally got his chance to tackle a more substantive character. Diary of a Seducer cast Mathieu Amalric as a notorious lothario and offered the performer a chance to show off his comedic side -- he eventually walked away with a nomination for Best Actor at France’s Acteurs à l'Écran festival.

Mathieu Amalric subsequently worked steadily throughout the rest of that decade, though his impact on North American audiences was minimal. An appearance opposite Juliette Binoche in 1998’s art-house hit Alice and Martin notwithstanding, Mathieu Amalric primarily found himself relegated to the sort of films that rarely played to viewers outside his homeland of France.

mathieu amalric directs wimbledon stage

Though he was keeping exceedingly busy -- from 2000 to 2004, he appeared in a whopping 17 films -- Mathieu Amalric remained determined to carve out a niche for himself as a filmmaker. In 2001, his debut effort, Wimbledon Stage, began its run on the film festival circuit and eventually paved the way for the fledgling director to take the helm of additional projects (including a 2007 documentary entitled Let Them Grow Up Here).

It wasn’t until 2004, however, that Mathieu Amalric finally found himself breaking through on the world stage as a result of his award-winning turn in the critically acclaimed drama Kings & Queen. Among his newfound fans was no less than Steven Spielberg himself, and Mathieu Amalric soon found himself working opposite such familiar faces as Eric Bana, Daniel Craig and Geoffrey Rush in the 2005 thriller Munich.

mathieu amalric in quantum of solace

In 2007, Mathieu Amalric took on his most challenging and internationally recognized role to date -- that of paralyzed fashion editor Jean-Dominique Bauby in the Oscar-nominated The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. His searing and heartbreaking work in the movie caught the attention of the Bond franchise’s producers, who were looking to cast the central villain for the notorious secret agent’s next cinematic outing (2008’s Quantum of Solace).

Cast as Dominic Greene, Mathieu Amalric’s stint opposite fellow Munich cast member Daniel Craig provides precisely the sort of antagonistic fireworks that one has come to expect from a 007 thriller.